Irish Detective Fiction – Alrene Hunt

April 4, 2012

I am a big fan of crime/detective novels. Sometimes, after a hard day at school, all I want is to relax… with a crime. Depending on my tiredness, I either pick up a TV show or a book. But, when picking up a book. How to distinguish good, complex fiction from trashy best-sellers? I rely a lot on other bloggers (big thank you) and on the Internet in general. But, until now there was a gap in my shelves: Irish crime novels written by a woman. Let’s say, I was searching for the Irish Kate Atkinson or P.D James.

I came across this article last week and I was half in awe, half astonished. There are three women in a list of ten writers. Maybe there are not as many published detective fiction writers out there (as Amanda pointed out); anyways, I was in awe with one of them: Arlene Hunt. I googled all her novels and they all appeal to me although I must admit that the crimes depicted seem… too violent.

You can visit Arlene’s website and browse through all her books. It is very easy to navigate through the Books section and they are spoiler-free. She has published seven novels, six of which belong to the John and Sarah series, because any worthy detective-writer out there, she has a trademark investigator.

I haven’t read any of Arlene’s books but I can’t wait. I love Ireland, Dublin is my favourite place in the whole world and I plan on living there one day and enjoying the fantstic Irish culture and, despite what many say, weather. Her crimes depict modern problems in our society, not only in Ireland, and, the fact that she created a man and a woman for her series, reminds me of my beloved Bones. I am sure there is much of the Irish culture (and Irish English) inscribed in her works.

Although many consider Ireland still part of the UK in terms of literature, I think this fiction deserves much more attention than what it gets. I also plan on reading Scottish detective fiction, but I’ll leave that for another post.

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7 Comments

I am so dying to read some of your favorites. Kate Atkinson and now Arlene Hunt. I seriously do not trust just anyone to put a good book into my hands but somehow I think you know just what I like to read.

Ah…maybe, depending on the timing. My June-July are pretty packed at the moment, but August is open. Also depending on how easily I can get a copy–sometimes it’s hard to find non-American authors unless they’re really famous. (And I’m trying not to buy any books right now!)

How cool! I love Ireland as well 😀 I’ve only been to Dublin once for four days, and despite the weather, I really liked it there. I’m going to live there someday – how long, I can’t say! It remains a dream as of now, but one that I will realize. Sláinte!